Into the Wild
by Demosthenes23
Summary: Alternate ending to S4...and beyond!
1. The Wedding Crasher

"I do hope to see you there," George said determinedly trying to catch his eye as if he knew something Murdoch didn't.

He forced a smile and waited for the intent staring to come to an end. Finally the well meaning constable let up and headed past him, hat in white gloved hand, all prim and proper for the wedding ceremony.

Immediately after, Murdoch ventured into his office in order to read the letter. Once he sat down though he found this task a bit difficult. He turned the paper over in his hands a few times as if trying to divine its terrible secrets that way. Whatever fears he had at its contents simply would not go away. What could this possibly be about?

Curiosity trumping his trepidation, he ripped open the envelope, unfolded the paper within and tentatively began reading. The first sentence made his brain freeze. Why wouldn't she be happy? She was to be married in less than an hours time! At the mention of her troubled heart, his own beat faster. Could it be? And then the next line shocked him greatly. How had she learned of his intended proposal? Had she been snooping around in his desk while he was imprisoned? What would possess her to do such a thing? Even in his troubled state of mind he clearly saw the answer. Ruby. That horribly blunt, meddlesome..._wonderful_ human being!

Julia was asking him to step up to the plate (or altar), to effectively ruin her wedding! Could he go through with it? Did he dare? A whirlwind of emotions raged through his mind, though his face remained impassive. Not that it mattered, there was no one else here! He glanced at his pocket watch and saw there was at best half an hour left for him to make it to the church in time. However, before he could even contemplate that weighty decision further, he had to free Ava Moon, his conscience demanded it of him, of this he was quite certain.

Quickly formulating a plan of action he grabbed his hat and headed out the door. He jumped on his bike and three minutes later skidded to a halt in front of his bank. To his utter dismay, there was a rather lengthy line up to the only teller present. It was a Saturday afternoon and the bank would be closing soon, and remain so until Monday morning. Glancing at his watch every few seconds, his mind was in absolute agony. Though it had only been a minute, he felt he would never reach the front of the line in time. Seeing as he was going to break the law, he figured a little rudeness was the least of his concerns.

Walking up to the front, he barged his way past an indignant looking middle aged man.

"What the devil do you think-"

"Detective Murdoch," he said flashing his badge, silencing the man.

"Yes, detective," said the young woman behind the bars, "how can I help you today?"

"I need to make a withdrawal," he said holding up his identification.

"Why this is preposterous!" exploded the man. "This is abuse of police power!"

Murdoch gave him an icy stare and that cooled him off, leaving him grumbling nearby. The young woman gave Murdoch an appraising look. Maybe she sensed the desperation behind his collected exterior? Whatever the reason was, she decided to let him get away with this.

"How much would you like to withdraw, detective?"

"One hundred dollars."

She glanced at her cash box and said, "I'm afraid I only have two and five dollar bills at the moment, I could summon the manager and-"

"Whatever you have is fine," he cut in, unable to stand this needless waste of his precious time any longer.

"Sign here," she said pushing the ledger towards him.

By the time he had signed it, she had already expertly sorted through the bills and was holding them out to him. He grabbed them and was out the door before the people standing in line could give him too many ugly stares.

Back at the precinct he rolled some of the money up, making a rather compact cylinder, and with a piece of string, tied it all together, as if it were a generous present to a great friend and not the embodiment of evil. As soon as that was accomplished, he rushed into the holding area and with much less hesitation than he would have expected, unlocked the cell door.

He told Ava what she needed to know to successfully dodge the police and handed her the wad of cash. She appeared stunned by everything he was doing. Indeed, Murdoch could barely believe it himself. Before she left, he provided her with a hooded cape from the lost and found box in order to better conceal her mutilated face during her travels. Thanking him, she disappeared from view through the side door and he was left standing there alone.

The time was now twelve minutes to the beginning of the ceremony and it would take him a good fifteen minutes to get there. If he was going to attempt this, it was now or never. He didn't have nearly enough time to think about this the way he wanted to, the way he normally would, going over every single detail and consequence in his mind, in every conceivable way, until he was positive in his deliberations. But wasn't that the whole reason they were in this mess?

If he hadn't spent nearly three weeks doing just that, he would have long since proposed to her and she never would have run off to Buffalo. For all he knew, they likely would have been married now themselves, maybe even adopted a child. If he had just followed his heart, instead of his head, his dream of many years would already be a reality.

_Stop it William_! he scolded himself. _No more dwelling on the past!...The time is now!_

He grabbed the silver case and placed it in his breast pocket, where the rest of the money was. Though it pained him, he left the letter there as a sort of explanation for his actions. He was about to remove his badge but then thought better of it. If he left that there, wouldn't he be freely admitting to his guilt? The way he had set things up, it would appear as if Ava had escaped while he was rushing off to the wedding, not before. And if they looked into money withdrawals, he could simply claim it was also related to the wedding, which it was. These scheming thoughts, so unlike his own, disturbed him, but what choice did he have? He wasn't about to risk going to jail the moment he got Julia back!

Then he hopped on his bike and peddled faster than he had ever peddled before, even faster than the time he had raced to the Grayson Institute in order to save Ms. Pensell from a homicidal, crossbow wielding maniac. And just like the last time, he felt ill equipped to handle the situation once he got there. Would Darcy and others be just as hostile towards him as Mr. Binney had been? What on earth was his plan here?

Every time he tried to formulate one, it slipped through his fingers, as though they were slick with oil, (physically, they were quite moist from his nervous anxiety and exertions) and he was left with nothing more than the nagging impulse to try again. About half way to the church, he gave up the pointless exercise, his mind was far too agitated to succeed. No, this time, he would be forced to act on instinct alone. He promised himself that in that most crucial of moments, he would not hesitate, he would do whatever was necessary to claim that which he had long since desired; what he had long since deserved. Never mind the fact that he was now a criminal, Julia of all people would not care, he rather liked to think that she would be proud by his actions, would admire the risks he had taken, that he was continuing to take.

Two minutes to the church he found it increasingly hard to pedal. This was not because he was exhausted (though he certainly was feeling tired) but instead because his front tire had deflated! Looking behind himself, he saw a bunch of broken glass that he had neglected to notice and avoid.

_Confound it!_

Murdoch tossed his bike aside and using the only means of transportation available to him, sprinted like his life depended on it, ignoring the stabbing pains in his sides (and the curious passersby) and his inability to catch his breath.

_Please God! Let me make it! Don't take her away from me again! For Forever! I'm begging you!_

With searing lungs and limbs, as if his entire body was on fire, he saw the dazzling white church in the distance, like a beacon of light guiding him home from stormy seas, like his saviour, his Lord.

_ Thank you God! Thank you!_

Stumbling near the top of the stairs in his complete exhaustion, he scraped his hands up in an effort to prevent a worse fall. They began to bleed and throb dully but he barely noticed, nay, cared considering all his other pains. He picked himself back up and with his last bit of strength barged through the large, heavy wooden doors, and suddenly found himself to be the centre of attention. Every head and eye was turned to face him and murmurs of disquiet were buzzing about, the noise louder than normal in the lofty chambers of this holy place. No doubt his dreadful appearance and amount of wheezing was adding fuel to the fire. None of this concerned him though and he refused to look anywhere but straight in front of him, towards his angel (though he did this mostly doubled over as he was still trying to catch his breath).

Julia was staring at him in apparent shock, as if she hadn't actually expected him to show up, as if she hadn't _told_ him last minute, giving him little option _but_ to do this. Nothing happened for several seconds and they just maintained steady eye contact (or as steady as it could be given his gulps for air). When he was standing tall again and she still had yet to move a muscle, he began to doubt himself, doubt herself and wonder if she had somehow set him up for the worst possible humiliation. But he couldn't believe her capable of such cruelty.

A worse thought crossed his mind, what if she hadn't even _written_ the letter? What if this was all Ruby's doing? What if it was another of her misguided attempts at helping matters that didn't concern her? The sisters shared remarkably similar handwriting. Had the great detective been duped? Had he been so desperate to see what he wanted to see, that he hadn't noticed the discrepancies?

For the first time since arriving, he broke eye contact with Julia and glanced to her left ever so slightly. Ruby was positively beaming at him and mouthed something that looked like, 'Keep going, William!'

Yes, it was quite conceivable that she had been the orchestrator of this whole thing. Had she even bothered to tell Julia about his previous proposal attempt or was she completely in the dark about everything? Was she wishing he would simply go away and stop ruining the biggest day of her life?

But then he realized it didn't matter who had written the letter. That was beside the point now. Here they both were, she was still free, and he refused to turn back, refused to betray that promise he had made to himself.

Putting one lead foot in front of the other, he made his way excruciatingly slowly towards the altar. He hated to think what would happen if he got up there and she didn't want him there, if he was dragged away by angry hands and tossed out like garbage.

Then miracle of miracles, Julia turned to Darcy, handed him the bouquet and said something that made his face lose all colour. Next she removed her engagement ring and laid it in his free hand, eliciting many a gasp from the crowd. After that she moved towards Murdoch as fast as her gown would allow, causing even more of a ruckus. From the way she was smiling at him, (and the fact that she was doing this at all) he knew his doubts had been unfounded. He smiled back, ecstatic at what was occurring, and damn the consequences.

In the middle of the lane way they met, standing close together but not quite touching. No words were spoken, there was no need for them. He had done what he had came here to do and it was high time they left. Holding out his arm, she took it and they headed towards the doors that were still wide open, with what appeared to be storm clouds overhead.

Before they exited, there was a great outcry from behind, from Darcy.

"Stop!" he exclaimed, dropping the flowers and running towards them. "Stop right this minute!"

"It's over Darcy!" Murdoch said somewhat smugly, "she's chosen me!"

"I don't care! I warned you that I would fight for her in the extreme!"

"I'm sorry, Darcy, but I don't love you! Not like I do William! If I had gone through with this, we'd just be living a lie! Surely you wouldn't want that?"

Rather than make him seize up, her words seemed to infuriate him all the more. Murdoch released his hold on Julia and prepared to fight. What would have turned into a violent altercation was thankfully avoided, thanks to a little unasked for help in the form of George and Brackenreid (the former as he knew the extent of their love for one another and the latter because Margaret had made him; okay the other reason as well). They had followed Darcy soon after and Brackenreid was now holding him back. Darcy's best man had tried to free his friend but George got in his way instead. The fact that they were both police men, seemed to make him think twice about fighting them and he quickly gave up his attempt, standing there stupidly.

"Well go on then, me old mucker!" hollered Brackenreid. "This bull is about ready to charge! I don't know how much longer I can hold him!"

They took his advice and descended the many stairs, all the while listening to Darcy's threats.

"You'll regret this, Murdoch! You'll pay for this dearly!"

"Oye!" came Brackenreid's voice, loud and clear, near the bottom. "That's a police officer you're threatening! One of the best!"

At his bosses last words, Murdoch's heart fell, suddenly ashamed of everything he had done, of dragging Julia down with him into his disgrace.

A shadow clouded his features, like the sky overhead, as they neared the waiting carriage, the one intended for the bride and groom. Once they arrived at its doors, the coach driver held the door open for them, saying congratulations, apparently deaf not to have heard all the ruckus nearby. Murdoch helped her into the carriage, trying to ignore the unpleasant feelings knawing away at him. Taking off, Julia finally noticed that something was amiss.

"William, what's the matter?" she asked concernedly, taking his hand in hers. "Are you unwell?"

He could try to lie and pretend like everything was fine but he couldn't; wouldn't do that to her, not after the position he had put her in.

"I'm not sure how to tell you this, Julia."

She squeezed his hand saying, "Whatever it is, I'm here for you."

Looking up into her beautiful bluish green eyes full of compassion, he forced himself to get this over with. "I did something terrible." Her eyes expanded with fear at his tone. "I let Ava Moon go, Littlefair's murderer." Julia gasped and then released his hand. She didn't say anything so he continued. His eyes welled with emotion. "I had to, Julia. My conscience demanded it of me. I-"

Julia put a gloved finger to his lips to silence him. She didn't know the whole story, but she didn't need to. If William had thought it necessary to break the law in such a major way, clearly things had been unspeakably terrible for this Ava Moon person. And from the little she had seen of Littlefair, she could well believe him capable of brutalizing a woman, or two.

"It's okay, William," she said soothingly, bringing his head to rest on her chest. She stroked his hair gently. "It's going to be all right. We'll figure this out together."

There was silence for a long while as he calmed down. Finally he spoke again.

"I can't go back. _We_ can't go back. Not until this all blows over."

"I know."

More silence.

Then he sat upright and said, "Julia, have you ever been to the Yukon?"

* * *

**Bam! And that's how it _should_ have gone! You're welcome! :D**


	2. Voyage Abroad

The train ride was lengthy but they didn't seem to notice. They were so caught up in each other, so invested in becoming reacquainted with one anothers lips that they barely even saw the varying beautiful landscapes as they passed by. It was as if they were on their honeymoon and indeed, they were mistaken for newly weds on more than one occasion. However, for all of their fooling around, Murdoch's virtue was still very much intact, as even this most joyous of reunions could not induce him to break his belief system.

On their sixth day together in the little room that they had barely left, and after a make out session that came dangerously close to crossing a line, Murdoch spontaneously proposed! Though to some it may have seemed rushed, (after all, they had just gotten back together) anyone who knew them, who knew everything they'd been through would think it about damn time!

Julia of course accepted without hesitation and Murdoch slid the gorgeous ruby ring on the same finger that so recently had held another. To celebrate they ordered champagne and got rather drunk and almost crossed that line again. And they certainly would have, if not for a timely interruption by a rather insistent knocker.

Begrudgingly, Murdoch released his hold on his fiancee, climbed out of the bed and whipped the door open. He found one of the train employees (Harold) and the food cart.

"What do you want?" he shouted drunkenly, making the man flinch in surprise.

As Murdoch seethed the man spoke in a calm manner. "Sorry to interrupt Mr. Murdoch, but I've brought you and your wife some dinner. I got a bit worried when you didn't show up in the dining hall all day. There wasn't much left except for liver and onions, I hope you don't mind."

Still incredibly annoyed, he continued to berate the poor fellow in his drunken stupor. "I do mind! I mind a great deal! You can't just come barging into a person's place whenever you feel like it!"

"I'm really very sorry," said the taken aback man. "I was just trying to be helpful."

"Well, you shouldn't have! I have half a mind to-"

"_William_," said Julia giggling, trying to be serious but failing, "calm down!" Giggling some more she said, "I don't know about you but I'm utterly famished! Let this gentleman do his job!"

"Oh fine then!" He grabbed the cart, pulled it inside and slammed the door in Harold's face.

After that rude awakening, he heeded Julia's first words and was beginning to relax again. It was then that he realized just how hungry he was and began cutting into the food and voraciously consuming it.

Julia laughed and said, "William, you are eating like a pig!"

"No I'm not!" he exclaimed, mouth full of food, some of which fell out onto his plate. She laughed again and he shovelled even more into his face...and promptly began to choke. He made a strange sound and she looked at him confusedly. Murdoch stood up, clutched at his throat convulsively and finally Julia understood what was the matter.

"William!" she shrieked, quickly getting beside him and frantically slapping his back. Unfortunately her strength seemed to be insufficient to dislodge the copious amounts of food stuck in his throat. Julia began to really freak out as his face turned purple and he fell to his knees.

She jumped towards the door, yanked it open and yelled for help. A few seconds later, Harold came running into their cabin and thumped Murdoch's back as hard as he could. It took a few good wallops but the stubborn bits were eventually jogged loose and went flying against the wall with a disgusting squelching sound. Julia hurried to his side as he switched between hacking violently and dragging in great gasps of air. When his face had returned to its former copper tone, Julia thanked Harold profusely and he modestly accepted her praise.

"Thank you," croaked Murdoch, his throat still ragged and sore.

This time Harold simply nodded and then left them alone, telling the other passengers who had accumulated outside their door to go back to their rooms.

"Never do that again," she said, resting her forehead against his own.

"I'll do my best, Julia," he said quietly as that was the best he could muster.

The rest of the food forgotten, they just held one another for awhile. Then since it was quite late, they undressed and got into their pyjamas. Even though they were now engaged, (and his senses had come back to him) Murdoch respectfully looked away like he had done all the previous times (either that or he had left the room altogether). But unlike the last few nights, they shared a bed. This was not one of their more raunchy interludes, but rather they simply continued to hold on to one another in a comforting way. Julia's head against his chest, he buried his face in her hair, breathing in her intoxicating aroma. Within a short while, they drifted off to sleep and did not awake once until morning, not even when a violent storm broke out for many miles of land.

* * *

Around three in the afternoon, an attendant came round to inform them that they would be arriving shortly. Since they hadn't taken much with them (they had stopped by each others place to get some clothing and other supplies before departing) it did not take long to pack up.

Bags in hand, they descended the train steps and beheld the utter majesty of the area. Mountains loomed up great and tall in the distance, making the few buildings here to seem positively miniscule. Birds and insects could be heard all around, immediately making one feel as though they were in the wilderness. And for all intents and purposes, they were.

"Welcome to the Yukon, Julia."


	3. Neverending Explorers

There was something about the air here that invigorated him. It was crisp and fresh and made him want to be outdoors as much as humanly possible, rain or shine. When this was combined with their isolation and separation from city life, from all their past problems and restraints, Murdoch couldn't help but feel more free, more alive, than he had in a long time. The last time he had felt this uninhibited was when he had been working as a lumber jack all those years ago. Those had been simpler times as he hadn't been bogged down by the weight of all his past mistakes and failures.

Julia was also revelling in the simplicity of things here. She was strongly reminded of her childhood days when her mother had still been alive and she had been a great tom boy, running around and doing as she pleased, not caring in the slightest at how unladylike she was behaving. Most of that behaviour had been groomed out of her as she grew up but it by no means had ever truly left. And now it was back with a vengeance, to both of their delights.

It was as if they were born again, free to start over without the constant whispers and disapproving stares of friends and family. All of this was to say that they were not shy about displaying their affection for one another in public. If hugs and kisses were akin to intimate relations, they would have put the local whore house to shame. Though their relationship was very recently renewed, she felt so secure in his feelings for her that she paid not a second thought to those seductresses constantly on the prowl.

Besides showering each other with passion, they kept quite busy. The Yukon was a vast, untamed wilderness, and as such, begged to be explored at every opportunity. Matters were helped greatly by the fact that the sun was setting later and later these days (and only staying down for a few hours at a time). Last week it did not set until almost midnight. No matter what though, they would always crawl back to the town and their (separate) beds, thoroughly exhausted from the days exploits. Exhausted but unspeakably happy.

When they had explored half a days travel on foot in all directions, they longed to go further out, to where the real wild things were. Being that far out, they would not easily have access to help if it should be so needed. This necessitated some basic training, similar to what a constable was supposed to undergo. Things like horseback riding, and how to shoot and properly maintain a pistol.

After purchasing two lovely equine specimens, Murdoch was unsurprised when Julia proved to be a natural at the riding aspect. Though it had been many years, she was once quite proficient at the sport and only took a short while for her to get back into the swing of things. Within a few days, it was hard to say who was more adept.

Handling of firearms was another matter. Julia disliked them greatly as she had seen first hand the damage they could cause on countless occasions. They were pure evil in her eyes but Murdoch persuaded her to learn.

"But I simply don't understand why it is necessary for _me_ to learn how to handle such a dreadful thing."

"As I've already explained Julia, if something were to happen to me, or we were to be separated, it would be best if you knew how to defend yourself."

They shared a look for a while and then she broke.

"Oh very well then. Show me how these infernal things operate."

They were out in the middle of a field in which Murdoch had devised a few makeshift targets and scattered throughout. With a rifle he took aim at the closest one about ten feet away, (an acorn on a tree stump) and lined up the shot for a few seconds.

"Now before you pull the trigger, it is wise to hold your breath as it minimizes the chances of error. This becomes even more important the further away the target is."

Julia nodded that she understood and he let loose a bullet. He missed the target spectacularly, the earth exploding much farther to the right.

Julia laughed at his failure and said, "Maybe we should _both_ get lessons from someone less rusty."

A bit peeved, Murdoch smiled regardless and responded, "Not necessary, Julia. I'm sure that was a one time occurrence."

Taking aim, he fired again and this time it flew past his intended target and landed in the grass quite a distance away.

"I take it you did that on purpose, William?" she asked gleefully.

He frowned slightly and said, "This rifle must be defective."

"Here let me try."

Begrudgingly he handed it over, instructed her on how to hold it properly and the next second she had successfully hit that first target. The acorn shattered into a hundred pieces.

She lowered the weapon and said, "You were saying?"

In the ensuing hours, (for it took that long before Murdoch successfully hit all targets) they went through an entire box of bullets and his arms were sore from propping up the solid weapon. So much so that he was glad they had not ridden out here as holding on to reins would have been quite the chore. And he was doubly thankful that the rifle had a strap on it so he was able to wear it across his back.

"What a marvellous time!" she exclaimed. "I admit I enjoyed myself much more than I was expecting." Glancing at him evilly, "I can't for the life of me think why though."

"All right, Julia, you've had your fun."

They smiled at one another and she took his arm as they strolled back to town.

* * *

A few days later they set out for their first grand adventure. Julia was dressed in the more rustic attire that one could purchase at the general (and only) store which meant she was now wearing trousers. There was no point in her fineries getting destroyed, not if she could help it. Murdoch was similarly dressed with no heavy suit jacket to make him sweat in the endless sunshine. He was also sporting a beige cowboy hat, something Julia had picked out for him as a joke but which both of them had taken a great liking to. Rarely was he seen without it.

They had supplies aplenty so there was no fear of going hungry anytime soon, which was fortunate as they were still unsure how long this excursion would last, whether by choice or otherwise.


	4. Creatures of Habit

Their first day was uneventful, save for a few minor things. During a narrow pass, one of their packs had snagged on a low hanging tree branch and ripped open, spilling some of their foodstuffs. Julia had noticed straight away and they promptly stopped. After a short brainstorming session, they used a spare rope to lash it back together. At another point, while they had been in the open, a sudden gust of wind had knocked both Julia's and Murdoch's hats off. Again, they stopped and retrieved them, though Murdoch's had landed in some mud and was now quite dirty. Once they found a cozy, sheltered spot for the night (though it was still light out) and settled in, Murdoch had found it difficult to light a fire with the damp wood here. But he had persevered and eventually a medium sized blaze was allowing him to cook their dinner of a rabbit he had rather proudly shot (it was up for debate as to whether this had been a fluke or not). Of course, they still had plenty of other food with them but it was mostly salted beef and bread, not the most appetizing of meals.

Though it was not cold, (since the temperature stayed pretty constant while the sun was up) they nevertheless found themselves huddled around the fire, Julia inbetween Murdoch's legs and leaning her head against his chest as they ate. It was silent except for their chewing, and the occasional fire crackle and animal sound. They were quite contented at the moment and felt no need for conversation, if anything, it would spoil their serenity. Many hours passed in this manner and they watched the fire grow dimmer and dimmer until it was nothing but a faintly glowing pit of embers.

Julia stood up and held out her hand to Murdoch. He took it and she led him into the tent, the only one that they had brought with them. Getting into their separate sleeping bags, they faced one another for several seconds in silence.

"Good night, Julia," he said, leaning in to gently press his lips against her own.

"The same to you, William," she breathed out afterwards.

Again they laid back down and just stared at one another. Somehow, they hadn't realized just how difficult it would be to get to sleep with one another so close at hand (in the train there had been bunk beds), especially when it was still ablaze outside, as if it were mid afternoon and not nearly eleven. To make matters worse, they were _not_ exhausted from being on their feet all day, as was usually the case. Tonight they were both wired and excited with the thrill of continued adventure, amongst other things.

As that infamous night in the train was still vividly etched in his brain, Murdoch began to fear what might happen if he didn't say something soon. So he did. He started spouting off about the least sensual topics he could devise on short notice. The first was about the various types of flora and fauna that they had passed during their days travels. Julia said little and seemed to be barely paying attention to him. Encouraged by this, he switched topics and rambled on about soil and rock types and how to distinguish all of them in great detail. The sun was finally setting and by now, he would have expected her to have drifted off to sleep, indeed, he had even bored himself a little, which was quite a challenging task as he found _everything_ extremely fascinating. But she was still wide awake and forever staring, the yearning clearly present across her smiling features.

Running out of ideas fast, he panicked and jumped out of his sleeping bag mid-sentence.

Julia raised an eyebrow at that, saying, "William, what on earth?"

"I-uh-I have to go relieve myself now, Julia!"

She laughed at that in a bewildered sort of way. "By all means go. You have my permission."

"Thank you," he muttered lamely as if he were a boy back in school and she were his teacher.

Walking past the now completely dead fire pit, he ambled into the darkening woods a ways, frantically trying to figure out how to avoid a certain erotic conclusion. How could he have been so stupid as to not bring more than one tent? He had once been such a careful planner but it seemed that ever since they got here, that had gone out the window, and indeed, the window had vanished all together! Which of course results in chaos. The desire was there, absolutely, it had been there for years, even before their experiment in the park took an unexpected turn. If only it had been him up on that altar with her, then this wouldn't even be an issue. In that case, they wouldn't likely be out here but that's neither here nor there. The point was that he wouldn't have to worry about sinning right now.

His thoughts were interrupted when he heard a rustle in the leaves and undergrowth. Immediately tensing up, he listened for a few seconds and heard nothing else. As soon as he moved again, it reappeared and this time it sounded closer. Stopping again, he scouted out the now dark enclosure, silently chastising himself for not bringing a lantern. _There it was again_! he thought. _And again!_

Each time he thought this, he heard the noise, clearly something was approaching him. Squinting as hard as he could, he still could not make out what it was. The rustle sounded like it was right beside him that time and he lost a little of his cool.

"Hello?" he said idiotically. "Is anyone there?"

Something brushed against his pant leg, making him jump back. Suddenly a light appeared from behind and the space in front of him was dimly illuminated. A very small rodent seized up in fright and then took off in the distance. Murdoch had only gotten a glimpse but he was pretty sure it was an American Pygmy Shrew, first discovered over half a century ago. Because they were so small, they had exceedingly high metabolic rates and as such, had to forage almost constantly, or they would starve to death.

_What a miserable existence._

At the moment though, he could relate to the poor creature as he himself was less than happy.

The crunching of feet came to a halt and Julia's voice called out to him. "William, are you decent?"

"Yes, Julia!"

She walked over to him."You were gone awhile and I started to worry."

"I'm sorry, Julia."

She touched his shoulder, making him become rigid. "William?" she asked concernedly, "is everything all right?"

He forced himself to relax. "Everything's fine, Julia, let's just try to get to sleep, while it's still dark out."

This time as they snuggled into their sleeping bags, he promptly turned on his side, away from her, so as to avoid temptation. Again he wished her good night and that was the end of it, the danger had passed...for now.


	5. Murdoch's Misadventure

He awoke groggily the next morning as his tormenting thoughts would not stop plaguing him. For her to be so close and yet completely out of reach was more than he could stand. At least in so far as last 'night' went. By the time he stirred, those thoughts were that of a distant nightmare, but like a nightmare, they are never completely erased from ones mind, eager to start the punishment anew given the slightest chance. So he didn't give it one. From the moment he awoke and even though he was nearing mental exhaustion, he was forever occupied with one task or another. Julia couldn't help but notice and comment.

"You are in a rush today, William. Any particular reason why?"

He looked up at her from his kneeling position by the tent pegs he was removing and felt certain unwelcome thoughts creeping back into his mind. "The weather," he said simply, returning back to his task. "I believe it will be making a change for the worse sometime soon. Better to get a move on before we are forced to take refuge from a storm the rest of the day."

Quizzically, "I didn't realize you had become such an astute forecaster." She glanced up at the beautifully clear sky. "It certainly doesn't look like rain."

"Well, Julia, we've been out here for almost a month and I believe to have learned a thing or two in that time."

She put her hands on her hips, smiling slightly. "Of course you would have developed this skill. Is there nothing you can't do? I must be incompetent to not have done the same."

"I didn't say that."

"And pray tell, William, how exactly did you come to your conclusion?"

"There's been a marked change in the directionality and strength of the wind. That has happened twice before during our travels here and heavy rain was always soon to follow."

"How is it that you didn't already possess this knowledge in Toronto?"

"I'm not sure," he said thoughtfully, "but I believe it has something to do with the lack of infrastructure here. Natural phenomenon are much more noticeable as a result." Looking at her pointedly, "Have you finished your interrogation now, doctor?"

"Yes, detective, I believe I have."

She tended to the horses while he finished rolling up the tent to almost as small a diameter as each of their sleeping bags. He then strapped it on his stallion, the black one, that Julia had named Jonathan (after the character from Dracula) and they were ready to head out again. Murdoch helped her on to her brown mare, named Mina and off they went into the dazzling sunshine. But it was as Murdoch had said, the wind was gusting quite strongly now, into their faces, severely impeding their progress. They were both forced to hold on to their hats for fear of losing them. And when that became a chore, removed them all together. As a consequence, it wasn't long before Julia's hair started to unravel, golden tendrils dangling here and there and dancing in the breeze. This was not an uncommon sight by any means, it had done so many times before while wandering the tundra. But since his nightmare was just below the surface, even that small dose of beauty was enough to make him look away, or at least, straight ahead. He wished he had horse blinders so that this peripheral distraction would not be possible.

After an hour of this, her hair had been completely undone, as had he. He swallowed through the hard lump in his throat and again forced himself to look away. But no matter what he tried, he found himself stealing glances and eventually she noticed this and gave him a wink. Not one for such a gregarious thing, he simply smiled and nodded.

Another hour passed and there was still no rain, though dark clouds had formed overhead. When another two hours went by and nothing had happened, indeed the wind had even died down, Julia again couldn't help herself from commenting.

"It appears that you have been mistaken, detective," she said smiling. "Mother Nature's bark has diminished to nothing but a whimper. I doubt we will be receiving her bite anytime soon."

"Oh ye have little faith, doctor," he said returning the grin. "But I would be quite happy to be wrong for once."

"And has that _ever_ happened before, William?"

"Yes, Julia, it has. When I was a child."

She laughed and then reached out her hand towards him. They were close enough to one another that they could hold hands. He did so hesitatingly, almost begrudgingly, but he did it nonetheless, lest he raise her suspicions. Against his wishes, his hand trembled at her touch and she looked at him confusedly, opening her mouth to say something when there was a loud rumble nearby. The next instant, lightning struck not a hundred feet in front of them and they immediately released their hold as the horses whinnied and reared at the sight and sound. Murdoch was strong enough to remain seated with just one hand on the reins but Julia had no such luck. She toppled over Mina's back side and onto the hard tundra, a groan of displeasure and hurt escaping her lips that was immediately cut off by another boom and bolt. At that, the mare took off, in an easterly direction, away from the scary sounds and with half of their supplies.

Lightning was getting closer and his priority was Julia. He hopped off Jonathan and held him tightly as he reared again.

"Julia!" he yelled over the constant roars, "are you all right?"

"Yes, William," she replied loudly, "I'm just a bit shaken up, that's all."

He held out his hand to her, she took it and he lifted her to her feet. She winced as she put her full pressure on her right leg.

"On second thought, I think I've sprained my ankle."

He helped her hobble over to the side of the now frantic horse and after many attempts and only once the skies were quiet for a few moments, managed to get her up there. Swinging himself on as well, in front of her, he told her to hold on tight. No sooner had he said this than a flash of electricity pierced a small tree, setting it afire and causing Jonathan to rear dangerously again. Murdoch swerved the insanely neighing stallion in the direction of Mina and with little prompting, he took off like the wind.

It was ten minutes before they had escaped the danger of the immediate vicinity. Even so, the rumble and flashes could still be heard and felt quite keenly. Finally as Murdoch had foretold, it started to pour, not a regular rainfall but an icy cold, torrential downpour. Visibility at almost zero, and plenty of mud to slip and slid in, he could not in good conscience keep up this gallop any longer. They slowed to a crawl and began scanning the few feet in front of them for some kind of shelter. But there was none to be had in this region, not so far as they could tell with their limited perspectives.

Half an hour later they spotted an opening to what appeared to be a cave. There was no telling what lay inside but they had little choice in the matter. It was either take refuge or risk getting hypothermia. And both of them were already sniffling and sneezing as it was. The cave was too low hanging to ride into directly, so they dismounted and led the poor creature in with them (Julia on the outermost side, supported by Murdoch). Jonathan was just as apprehensive as they were, as Julia blindly felt their way into the growing darkness. Far from being the warm, cozy environment that they longed for, it was damp and cold itself, and no matter how far they went in, it would remain so. Therefore, they had no idea how large the cave was or if they were even alone.

Murdoch sneezed then and it echoed around them, scaring the now easily startled horse. Nothing leapt out at them from the shadows and he was reassured slightly that nothing would. It appeared that the rain was not going to stop anytime soon so they were trapped here until then. He wasn't about to hold on to Jonathan for that indeterminate length of time. Unfortunately, there were no dry matches to be found and he couldn't easily locate something to tie the stallion to within the cave, especially not while he was holding on to both of them.

"J-julia," he said, teeth chattering, "if you c-could possibly k-keep hold of Jonathan for j-j-just a moment, I m-might be able to find a groove or s-some s-such th-th-thing to tie him to."

"Of c-course," she replied.

A few minutes later he found what he was looking for and called them over to him. Julia bumped into him as she couldn't see him.

"T-terribly s-s-sorry, William."

"N-no m-matter."

With Jonathan securely fastened, they could now focus on themselves. They were almost freezing and even if they could find some dry wood within the cave, they had no matches with which to light it. Mind you, due to one of William's water proofed bags, there was still one mostly dry blanket. Somehow they had managed to bring _that_ but not any rain coverings for their persons. If they had done that, the following might not have been necessary, (though it was unlikely, given how torrential the downpour had been).

Teeth chattering away for several silent seconds, he was startled when she touched his chest, but even more so when she began undoing his buttons.

He grabbed her wrist, "J-julia, w-what on-"

"We w-will f-freeze to death if we d-don't warm up s-s-soon! We n-need b-body heat!"

"J-j-julia," he said blushing, glad she couldn't see, "you kn-know I c-can't!"

"This is n-no t-time for m-m-modesty, William!"

And again she started undoing his buttons. And again he stopped her.

"_William_!" she exclaimed sternly. "Do you want to d-d-die?"

The thought of never seeing her again was more than he could bear and finally he relented but he took over his own stripping duties. However, when he got down to his long johns he hesitated again.

As if sensing his refusal to get completely stark naked, she touched his chest again and said, "Everything, W-william, don't st-stop now."

Removing his last shred of clothing, he felt incredibly uncomfortable and reflexively covered his privates even though she couldn't see him. It was the next part that he was dreading, and panicking, tried to get out of it again.

"I th-think this is g-good enough, Julia, we don't n-need t-to t-t-touch each other."

Despite herself and their dire situation, she laughed internally, when she pictured his mortified expression in her minds eye. Without another word, she found his shivering arm and draped the blanket over his shoulders. Then she moved closer towards him and he gasped as their flesh made contact for the first time. This was in part because she was colder than him but mostly for another reason. He was still covering himself with his hands and was extremely grateful considering his unasked for but unsurprising reaction.

Again she understood his dilemma and went around behind him to hold him that way as she so very recently had been doing.

"I'm so s-sorry, W-william," she whispered into his ear. "Tr-truly."

"Hopefully this un-p-pleasant b-business will be o-over soon."

"Unpleasant?" she said more sharply than she had intended.

"You kn-know what I m-mean, Julia."

They stood there awkwardly for what felt like forever. Murdoch spent the entire time alternatively trying not to think about what was occurring (and failing miserably) and chastising himself for ever bringing Julia here without first being married. It had been fear more than anything that had caused this whole situation to be possible. He had feared what would happen to him, to them, if he had stayed in Toronto any longer than was necessary and awaited his judgement there. So foolishly (and cowardly), he had dragged her to the ends of the country, about as far away as he could hope to go without leaving it all together. But apparently it didn't matter where he was, God was finding ways to get back at him regardless. This was about the most torment he had ever been in, even more so than when she left for Buffalo or found out she was engaged to another.

Speaking of his past sins, it may be prudent to mention the following. A week or so after they had arrived in the Yukon and while they were out on one of their adventures, they had discussed in depth the reason for his breaking the law. Julia had claimed that she didn't need to know every little detail but he had insisted. Not only because he wanted her to know everything he did but also because he _needed_ to unburden himself (in this and in stealing her away from another man and forcing her to break a holy covenant). The guilt had been gnawing away at him for weeks and it had started to affect his jolly mood. He didn't want to start snapping at her for no reason whatsoever and so decided to face the issue head on. And it had worked (for the most part) but here he was again, breaking his belief system in a most infamous manner. It was little consolation that he had had to. He had a disturbing feeling that this unfortunate event would cause him to be reeling in guilt sooner rather than later and for much longer than his previous sins.

Eventually Murdoch became aware of warmth returning to his finger tips. A few minutes later and the pleasant sensation had spread throughout the rest of his body.

Eager to get away he said, "Well, Julia, I believe I am back to normal. You can let me go now."

"Not so fast, William. What do you intend to do once I do?"

"What do you mean?" he asked, knowing full well what she meant.

"William, you have _no_ dry clothes to change into. You would just freeze all over again."

"We can't just stay like this forever, Julia!"

She sighed when she heard the raw desperation in his voice. It saddened her greatly that something so natural should cause him so much pain, especially when she had gotten a great deal of enjoyment out of this situation herself. Not that she had planned to, it just sort of happened.

"I know that, William, but what else _can_ we do?"

And so they remained that way for another unknown length of time, before the rain finally let up, and with it the typical Yukon sun and heat. By that point and to his everlasting shame, he had become quite comfortable with their situation, and with the pitter-patter of her heart beat against his back, and had even contemplated a certain other thing several times over. But through sheer will and determination, he had managed to avoid sinning further than he already had. He removed her hands from his chest and pulled back the blanket briefly before closing it back around her.

"I'm going to go hang our clothes and bags up. Hopefully it won't take long for them to dry."

"I'll help y-"

"No, Julia, I don't think that would be a good idea." If he actually saw her in all her glory, there was no telling what would happen. He couldn't risk it, not after all his other sins.

"All right. I'll be right here with Jonathan when you return."

She had thought he had left and so was surprised when she felt him caressing her face.

"William?"

"I imagine you're very beautiful right now, Julia. Even more so than usual."

Somewhat bewildered by this comment, she didn't respond. Then he kissed her quite passionately, also catching her off guard. The next instant his lips were gone, as was he, and she was left standing there, breathing heavily and all in a dither.


	6. Tooth and Nail

Once everything had been hung up the best it could be, Murdoch simply stood there in his birthday suit, shielding his eyes as he looked out across the never ending Yukon horizon, contemplating how unpredictable life could be. Never in a million years did he ever think the previous hour and a half would have occurred. For a second he smiled slightly, remembering all the details to his most intimate contact with Julia. Then he came to his senses and chided himself for such impure thoughts, thoughts of a woman that was not his wife.

Suddenly there was a loud bang. And another. They were gunshots.

_Julia!_

He sprinted to the cave entrance and didn't slow down once he got there, even though he could not see a thing once he was within. Not surprisingly, he tripped on a bump in the cold stone floor and was flung forward quite a ways, scraping up a good portion of his front side. As he scrambled to his feet, his hand touched something warm and sticky. He couldn't be certain what it was but he had a good idea and consequently a very bad feeling.

_Blood! _

There was far too much of it to be his own from the fall.

_Oh God no!_

"Julia!" he called out frantically.

"William!" came the response soon after. It sounded oddly strained, which worried him greatly.

"Are you okay?" he asked as he blindly groped towards the voice, his foot striking against something solid and soft in the middle of the cave.

"I'm fine, William," she said just a few feet away.

He reached towards were he thought she was and accidentally swiped one of her breasts. Apparently she was no longer covered with the blanket.

"I'm s-"

"Never mind that, William," she said sharply, taking hold of his hand.

"What happened?"

"It appears we weren't alone after all. Something attacked Jonathan. I'm afraid he's dead...as is whatever attacked him."

"You're certain?"

"As certain as I can be in this pitch black pit." Silence for a few seconds. "Are there truly no dry matches to be had?"

"No, none," he said shaking his head even though she couldn't see. "But I believe I may be able to get the day light in a box to work, once it drys out a bit more. In the meantime, it would be best to get you out of here. There's no telling if there are more animals present."

"My thoughts exactly. It's a miracle I managed to hit it, let alone the rifle working at all, given all the water damage."

They took a few steps and then he realized something. They still had no clothes on!

"Do you know what happened to it? The blanket?"

"Oh, it's here somewhere."

A few seconds later they banged their heads together as they kneeled over to look for it. They both apologized almost simultaneously and then a little while later Murdoch had found it. Unfortunately it was drenched in blood. Whether Jonathan's or the creatures, he couldn't say, but in any case, this was bad news. They couldn't stay in here any longer without freezing again or getting attacked by something, but leaving meant exposing their naked bodies to one another!

Would God never cease to punish him for his past sins?

Sighing internally, he told her to never mind and led her into the brilliance of the afternoon, never once looking back, the opposite of what poor Orpheus did and in doing so, lost his wife forever. Not that there was any real fear of that happening here, this wasn't some mythological underworld that they were emerging from. Murdoch continued to lead her a ways past the cave entrance, to where their things resided. As soon as they got there, he began fiddling with the day light in a box, keeping his back to her at all times. His front side had begun to throb dully from all the cuts and scraps he had sustained but he paid them no mind, they were the least of his concerns right now. He blew on the contacts a few times, attempting to dry them out faster than the sun could, when he heard a humph from behind. Several minutes passed before another one was uttered.

"Are you _really_ going to ignore me this entire time, William?"

"What would you like to talk about, Julia?"

"That's not what I meant and you know it!" she huffed.

He sighed again, this time out loud. "I'm not going to look at you, Julia. It would not be proper."

Now that the shock of what had happened had worn off, she was indignant at her near death experience occurring in the first place, especially when it seemed a completely needless event.

"Propriety be damned!" she burst out. "I could have died back there and it was all because of your imaginary need to keep me at arms length!"

Stiffly, "I'd say I was quite accommodating before that point."

"Oh for heavens sakes!" she shrieked, stepping into his line of vision. "Look at what you almost lost!"

He tried his hardest to avoid glancing down but couldn't help himself this time. It was only for a second but he got an eye full and then some. Cheeks flushing, he hastily looked away, doing his best to try and forget what he just witnessed and at the same time hoping he would remember forever.

"Oh, William," she said softly, touching his battered chest. "You're hurt. I had no idea."

"It's nothing, Julia, nothing that I didn't deserve. I should never have left you in there by yourself. I'll never forgive myself."

"No, I'm sorry, William," she said, taking his head in between her hands to stare directly into his eyes. "I shouldn't have exposed myself to you. That was very mean of me. I should have respected your beliefs."

"Thank you for saying that, Julia, but given the situation, I can't really blame you for being annoyed with me." Turning away again he said, "Now, if you don't mind, I'd like to get back to this."

"By all means. I'm curious to see what I killed."

With the day light in a box in one hand and a dried out pistol in the other, they ventured back into the cave, sans clothing. It would be hours still before those had dried properly. Sweeping the light around the floor, he immediately came across some bloody footprints, those that resulted from walking through the blood pools. Following those with the beam of light, he first revealed Jonathan, still and unmoving. He was definitely dead, like Julia had said. What was disturbing was the intestines that were trailing out a ways, through the gaping hole in the stallions abdomen. It appeared that first he had been bitten across the neck, incapacitating him, and then his stomach had been ripped open by a massive claw, the owner of which was finally illuminated. There was a furry brown animal, about as large as a medium sized dog, that looked something like a skunk, with a terrifying set of claws that had yet to fully retract, even in death. He shivered involuntarily at how this could have gone down, if the creature (what he believed was a wolverine) had decided to attack Julia instead, or if Jonathan hadn't been present at all.

Julia walked over to it prompting Murdoch to exclaim irrationally, "What do you think you're doing, Julia?"

"Investigating," she said simply, squatting down.

"We already know cause of death though!"

"Right," she said, laughing. "It appears that old habits die hard."

Realizing that the light was exposing her to him again, he moved it off to the side. "We should get going. There's nothing left for us here."

"All right."

However, before they went anywhere, there was an angry growl from an unknown source. Julia whirled around to face the noise, visibly starting to tremble when the second wolverine made its way into the spotlight. It froze slightly in the glare when it was only a few feet away from her. Murdoch's blood ran as cold as that already on the stone floor. The wolverine hunched back on its hind legs, preparing to strike and Murdoch pressed the trigger. The shot ran wide but was enough to deter the beast from its previous action. Rather than run away, it set its beady eyes on Murdoch and charged at him!

"William!" yelled Julia, the fear painfully evident in her voice.

The wolverine was surprisingly silent, considering how fast it moved. Within another two seconds it would be upon him. He shot again but missed and it lunged, deadly claws shining evilly in the dim light, eager to tear him to shreds. A split second before impact, he dodged the attack by leaping to the side. Murdoch whipped his gun around at it, and as it lunged again, he fired several shots in its direction. Their bodies collided, knocking Murdoch over backward, (losing the gun and flashlight as well) with the wolverine atop him.

"William!" Julia shrieked again, running over to him, heedless of her sprained ankle and any potential danger.

When she got to the wolverine, she kicked at it, pushing it away from her fiance. It didn't react. Some of its blood was covering an unconscious Murdoch. There was also a mild slash across his chest, nothing serious though. Regardless, she was infuriated by the sight. She picked up the gun and let loose the remaining bullets into the already dead animals chest cavity, getting an intense amount of savage pleasure by doing so.

Murdoch had banged his head good against the wall before he fell and was still not moving. Julia tossed the empty gun aside and grabbing him under the armpits, dragged him out into the relative safety of the light. By that point, he slightly came to his senses and was able to support his own weight for part of the way back to their things, and the rifle she had foolishly not taken, even after it had served her so well before.

_Stupid! Stupid!_

She laid him against a large rock and got to work cleaning his many wounds. Luckily the bandages were now dry and wouldn't serve to chill her beloved in his woebegone state. As she put the final touches to his dressings, he stirred fully, blinking up into the sunlight and her ecstatic face.

"Oh William!" she said happily, embracing him tightly and making him squirm.

"Julia, please!" he yelped, as much from pain as from arousal.

"Right, sorry!" she said, quickly releasing her hold.

An awkward silence ensued.

"Are our clothes sufficiently dried yet?" he asked quietly.

"I'm afraid not."

He started to stand up and she supported him when he swayed a bit from light headedness. Then he marched over to his damp attire and began getting dressed. He couldn't take being exposed like this any longer. Besides, he reasoned that the hot sun would be enough to offset any real chilling effects. For the time being, that seemed to be holding true.

Once he was finished dressing, he was immensely relieved to find that Julia had done the same. The problem was, now that he had seen what lay beneath, it was hard to not picture it every time he looked at her.

Oh dear God, he thought despairingly. Will this torment never end?

They waited another two hours before packing their things up. During that time, Julia had mentioned how she had rather enjoyed being so liberated. And went on and on about a nudist colony she had read about in Europe.

"I have half a mind to go there one day."

"Julia," said Murdoch raising an eyebrow, "you can't be serious."

"Why not, William?" Smirking at him, "Didn't you have a fun day?"

They shared a look for a moment and then both burst out laughing at almost the same time. The activity hurt his chest and he abruptly stopped, wincing as a new wave of pain shot through him. Julia gave him a concerned look but he waved it away.

"I've suffered much worse."

"Yes, I know." Frowning, "You seem to get injured almost every month. It makes me wonder if you are in the right line of work."

"You've never voiced your concerns on this issue before. What has prompted you to do so now?"

"I don't know exactly," she said looking away. "I guess it's a rather different matter to see it happen first hand. Normally I only deal with the after math." She glanced at her engagement ring. "And there are other considerations to be taken into account now."

He clasped her hand in his. "If you would like me to find a new profession, just say the word."

Incredulously, "You would do that for me? Just like that?"

"Of course. I've seen the effect police life has had on Margaret. I don't want you to worry about me every day if you don't have to."

She smiled at him. "I can't tell you how happy that makes me." The smile faltered. "But I can't ask you to just give up everything you've worked so hard to achieve."

He grinned, "I'll make you a deal, Julia. If my position has been filled by the time we get back, or I've been suspended indefinitely, I _won't_ continue to work for the constabulary."

"How thoughtful of you," she said returning the look.

They kissed for a few moments.

"Well, William, I suppose we should start heading back."

"Yes," he said gravely. "It was fortunate we weren't out further than we were when catastrophe struck."

"Indeed."

"Only pack the essentials, everything else will have to be left behind."


	7. Fears Abound

Carrying so much excess weight severely hampered their progress. Murdoch was burdened with the vast majority of the load as Julia's ankle was still smarting. At this rate, it would take about three days to get back into town, a prospect Murdoch was less than thrilled about given the soreness of his body. To make matters worse, the Yukon heat was present in fine form, so that not long after his clothing had dried it was once again drenched; this time in sweat. Though Julia's back was only lightly ladened, she was fairing no better than him, and together, they made quite the tableau, as if they were travel worn desert wanderers, seeking salvation at a miraculous mirage.

What he wouldn't give for another rainstorm! They had water supplies all right but they were less than half of what they originally started with (since losing Mina they had just one container) and there was no telling when they would next come across a stream for a refill (neither had paid much attention to such things on the way out). In other words, and to both of their dismay, they were forced to heavily ration the precious commodity.

Their misadventures thus far made one point painfully clear; they had been spoiled in civilized society for far too long to really be able to develop any survival skills. At least their gun skills had served them well enough. Murdoch shivered to think what would have happened to them otherwise. How could he have been so foolish as to take off into the wild without a guide? And how could he have put his fiancee, the woman of his dreams, the love and light of his life, in mortal peril? What had he- what had they been thinking? The answer was simple. They hadn't. They had been captivated by the sheer awesome majesty of the Yukon, so unlike Toronto, and had thought themselves explorers, willing and ready for anything. And they had been dead wrong. Thankfully the dead part was left out of the equation...for now anyway.

_Stop it William!_

He would have conversed with Julia in order to escape his less than productive thoughts, except that they were both so exhausted and trying their best to conserve energy, that they had previously deemed speech an unnecessary strain, one to only be attempted if absolutely essential. Eventually they could go on no longer and they stopped out in the open plains and wearily set up the tent for the night. The wind was strong out in this exposed area but the tent pegs were more than enough of a match to combat it. After a hurried supper of slightly salted beef and stale bread, (the water had tarnished both of their staple foods) they collapsed into their too warm sleeping bags, and then atop them and quickly drifted off to sleep, consumed with twisted thoughts of the unforgettable day and oblivious to the continuously raging wind against their enclosure.

* * *

Come morning, he felt like a new man. He turned on his side to watch his beloved sleep and was startled to find her space unoccupied! Given the previous day his mind went into overdrive, a cascade of competing horrors freezing him to the spot. Finally he came to his senses and peeked his head through the flaps of the tent. Immediately his mind was put at rest, and a huge smile crossed his features as he gazed upon Julia. She was busy brushing out her rain and windswept hair with her fingers, (as her brush was no more, as well as all of her other feminine supplies) quietly humming her favourite tune to herself and quite unaware of the terror she had caused him. As far as he was concerned, she was a vision; one to be forever immortalized by a master painter, with no colour or shade left untouched; and not for the first time in his life, wished he possessed even the slightest modicum of drawing ability. But for all his other talents, he knew that dream would never come true. Unfortunately he couldn't even capture this moment with a photo, as his camera had been destroyed from the deluge.

So instead he satisfied himself with taking in the sight for as long as possible, afraid to move a muscle, lest he alert her to his presence and shatter this breathtaking moment in time. It was no matter. Soon she cocked her head in his direction and raised an eyebrow at him, a slight smile curving the edges of her luscious lips.

"William, what are you doing?" The smile increased in size, "And why are you gawking at me like that?"

It was only then that he realized his jaw had dropped while he had been watching her.

Quickly closing it he said, "I was simply admiring the scenery."

Giving him a knowing look, she replied, "Yes, the scenery here is quite handsome."

Murdoch walked over to her and embraced her from behind, wrapping his arms around her tiny waist.

"Good morning," he mumbled as he kissed her neck a few times. "How are you fairing today? Is your ankle any better?"

"Much. I believe I will be able to shoulder more of the burden today."

He nodded into her clavicle. "Thank you. That would be most appreciated."

Then she turned around to face him, gently placing her dirt clogged hand to his chest. "And you? How are your wounds?"

Smiling, "Barely notice the pain anymore. You're a miracle worker."

She returned the gesture. "Be that as it may, I still want to take another look at it. The last thing we want is for it to get infected through unnecessary neglect."

Without further ado, he removed his shirt, she unwrapped his soiled bandages and promptly frowned.

"Something the matter, Julia?"

Silence for a bit. "I would have liked this wound to look better than this by now."

"It hasn't even been one day, Julia. Surely you couldn't have expected it to be fully healed?"

She squeezed her lips together and glanced away. "I know, William, but I hate seeing you injured."

He lifted her chin up in order to get her attention and catch her eyes with his own. "As do I you... but we're both still here. Something as trivial as a wolverine attack can't stop us."

She grinned at that and then he claimed her lips for a short blissful distraction. Afterwards she used the tiniest amount of water to get the caked dirt off her hands. Satisfied with their relative cleanliness, she commenced cleaning his wound and re-bandaged it with the last of the fresh supplies. From here on out, he would have to make due with this set of cloth and nothing else. Hopefully his injury wouldn't ooze quite as much over the next few days or the dressings would be incredibly gross by the time they got back to civilization.

With everything packed once more, they shared a grim sort of smile and ventured forth. By all accounts the day was looking up; the sun was shining but it wasn't frying them; the weight was more evenly distributed so it wasn't as taxing on Murdoch's strength; the wind had died down and was playing softly against their faces in a soothing way; birds were chirping all around giving them something pleasant to listen to; and they had yet to spot a ferocious animal of any sort in the distance.

All in all, their minds were at ease, and happily smiling at one another, clasped hands as they trekked across the tundra. Now _this_ is more what he had had in mind when he pitched the idea to Julia. No death and destruction, just sightseeing and wonder, as had been the case so many times before, closer to town.

They continued in this idyllic manner for several more hours until they came for a stop, in order to get some rest and have lunch. This time it was wrinkled apples and stale bread. Not the most appetizing but better than nothing and absolutely necessary if they were to carry on.

"I suppose now is as good a time as any to discuss our future plans," he said after he took a bite of a golden delicious, that was far from delicious.

"Wedding plans!?" blurted out Julia excitedly, almost dropping her food on the ground.

He looked apologetic. "No, that's not what I meant." Her face fell. "I was just wondering what we would do once we got back into town. Do you wish to stay longer or have you had enough of this place?"

"I think you know the answer to _that_, William," she said a little coldly.

Ignoring her tone he said, "And once we leave the Yukon, where would you like to go?"

Surprised, "I just assumed we would go back to Toronto."

"There are other options. For instance we could travel to British Colombia to see my half brother and father." She didn't say anything. "Or the badlands," he said hastily, "that would be on the way back!"

Narrowing her eyes, "You aren't by any chance trying to avoid the inevitable are you?" She took his hand and her eyes softened. "I would completely understand if that were the case."

He sighed. "I'd be lying if I said I wasn't anxious about my judgement. What if Stockton locks me up and throws away the key?"

Caressing his face, "We both know that's not going to happen, William. There's no definitive proof against you. You made sure of that."

"I suppose I did," he said, still uncertain, "but I wasn't thinking clearly then, I could have overlooked something."

It was Julia's turn to sigh in an exasperated manner. "William, we've been through this many times now! The chief constable will have his suspicions, and you've most certainly lost all good faith with him forever, but there's_ nothing _to worry about. Besides, I'm sure Thomas would vouch for you if Stockton decided to cause a stink, and he's not likely to go against the word of two highly acclaimed police men."

"You don't know him like I do," he muttered darkly, thinking back to the last time they had spoken. Stockton had wanted to ship him off to Winnipeg for doing his duty! What would he do now that he had broken the law? Murdoch couldn't bear to be separated from Julia ever again. But how could he avoid ever going back?

Things could be worse. At least Giles did not have the final say so. That man was first and foremost an arbitrator of the law, _everything_ else played second fiddle. And there was a large amount of bad blood between them, possibly even more so than with Stockton. It wasn't long ago that the man had arrested him for murder!

"What was that?" she enquired sharply.

Not wanting to get into a pointless fight he said, "I'm sure you're right, Julia."

Eyeing him suspiciously for several seconds she finally said, "I'm glad we're in agreement."

The rest of their lunch was eaten in silence and then it was marching time again.


	8. Up and Over

She hadn't meant to snap at him like that. The truth was that she was just as worried about the consequences of his actions as he was. The difference was that she was still somewhat in denial. She didn't want to believe that anything terrible would befall him; would befall them; when they finally did decide to head back. How could she? She had just gotten him back, she wasn't eager to lose him all over again! They had been there, done that, it was time for a new chapter in their saga, one that wasn't stained with anguish. If _he_ didn't believe in their chances at coming out on top, how was _she_ supposed to? It unnerved her to see him so fragile and unsure of himself and the longer he went on about being imprisoned and disgraced, the more difficult it became to think otherwise. Hence her less than patient manner with him at lunch time.

There was an obvious, if not cowardly solution. They could simply never return to Toronto. But running away from their problems for all time would only serve to make William look that much more guilty. Besides, Toronto was their home. All their friends and colleagues lived there. Their careers, and all that hard work, everything they had strived for, would be tossed out like garbage if they never returned. What on earth would they do with themselves out here or even in British Colombia? Would William become a Mountie like Jasper?

The thought of him dressed in the bright red outfit brought a smile to her face, one that William just happened to notice.

"Care to share, Julia?" he asked as he lent her a hand up a slippery slope, through a narrow mountain pass.

"It's nothing, William, just a silly little thought of mine."

He shrugged, "Suit yourself."

Julia had caught a glimpse of her engagement ring when she held out her hand. "But I _would_ finally like to discuss our wedding plans." They shared a short glance. "You seem to have a talent for dodging that bullet."

William appeared to be very uncomfortable with this line of questioning. "I guess we should," he conceded. "It's just..."

"What, William?" She gave him a fleeting annoyed look. "It's just what? Don't you _want _to marry me?"

"Of course I do, Julia," he said abruptly stopping so that she almost collided into him. Again he looked very uncertain. "I'm just not sure that discussing such things is the best idea, given the circumstances."

She made a face. "You mean given your impending doom?"

He reached out to her and she moved away. "Julia-"

"If you're _so_ certain of your fate, it leaves me to wonder why on _earth_ you bothered to stop my wedding in the first place!"

William frowned. "Now hold on, Ju-"

"Why should I?" she said, hugging herself. "It's the truth, isn't it? You think you're doomed! You think _we're_ doomed!"

All of her own uncertainties came pouring forth now in a cascade of liquid fear. Or at least, they _would_ have, if she hadn't been so dehydrated. Even so, she turned away from him so that he couldn't see her pitiful display. He didn't do anything for many seconds and then he wrapped her up in a cocoon of warmth and strength and she let herself stay there for as long as she needed, his touch nourishing her weakened frame, giving her new life.

The 'dry' waterworks over, he took over the role of comforter, albeit in a slightly scary way.

"We'll get through this Julia," he said, a steely edge to his tone, "I'll make sure of it."

She was pretty sure that he wasn't _just_ talking about his legal troubles anymore. In fact, she was quite sure that her own outburst had had more behind it too.

Julia looked up at him with wide, red eyes. "How?"

Smiling without humour, "If it becomes necessary, you'll find out."

At his words, Julia felt a shiver run through her spine, and it wasn't the pleasant type she normally felt at his kiss. What could he possibly mean? What had she just done?

* * *

Reaching the top of the mountain, they immediately plopped down in exhaustion, too tired even to bother gazing out across the land. This pass had been _much_ easier on the way out, with the horses shouldering all the strain. At least, Murdoch _thought_ this was the same pass. It was rather hard to tell considering how many mountains there were in this area and how off course they had been blown during the storm. They had dried the map out but the extreme rain had wreaked havoc with the ink and it was barely legible now. Not that it had been particularly useful when it _had_ been readable. Though The Yukon had only officially been formed this year, (The Hudson's Bay Company separated it from the North West Territories as a result of the beginning of the gold rush the previous year) it had technically existed for about thirty years hence. But even so, the cartographers had not filled in many of the blanks to any great length because there had never been much need as the population was always so small and confined to remote towns here and there. Murdoch estimated it would be another half day before they entered more detailed map areas. And if he squinted with all his might, he would hopefully be able to make out where they were exactly.

Feeling some strength returning to him, he stiffly stood up, and using his binoculars, looked around for some notable point of reference. Luckily, or unluckily, depending on ones point of view, they had apparently climbed the tallest mountain in this range and because of this, he was able to see past the others a great ways. Murdoch scanned the horizon for minutes and saw nothing that seemed familiar. Starting to freak out that they were completely lost, he involuntarily glanced back at Julia, who was watching him vaguely from the ground. With dry mouth he said as much to her. Julia burst out laughing.

"I don't know what you think is so funny!" he snapped in an uncharacteristic manner, the beginnings of a headache bothering him.

"You're right," she said soberly, "there's nothing funny about this situation." Grinning evilly, "But would it not be prudent to use your compass at least _once_ before completely losing your head?"

"Oh right," he said quietly, feeling foolish for his outburst and wondering how he hadn't thought of that himself.

Once he had located the compass it was a simple matter of getting the needle to point south, towards The Yukon's southerly border and more importantly, the town they had come from; Whitehorse; population unknown since the number of people varied at any one given time due to the gold rush; but if Murdoch had to guess, it couldn't be more than a hundred. And out of that hundred, at least seven of them were prostitutes. Not that he was interested in such things, but it was hard not to have noticed them seductively calling to him from their balconies during those rare moments that he had been alone (and even some when he hadn't). He quickly put an end to that train of thought as it brought out other less savoury notions about his fiancee. He glanced back at Julia again and she raised an eyebrow at his expression.

_Focus William!_

"Ah," he said pointing into the distance, "that is where we want to head."

"And how much longer till we get back?"

Again Murdoch scanned the landscape with his binoculars. But this time he _did_ see something of note. If he wasn't much mistaken, there was the town! It was just a speck on the horizon but he thought it must very well be what he was looking for.

"There!" he exclaimed excitedly. "There's Whitehorse!"

"Wonderful!" she said joyfully, getting up to take a look herself. "Uh, William," she said, holding back another laugh, "that _isn't_ Whitehorse."

"What do you mean?"

"It was just a speck of dirt!" she roared, unable to stop the mirth from pouring out.

He took the binoculars from her and wiped off the lenses. Then he looked again. She was quite right. There was nothing there now!

_Confound it!_

Julia was still laughing hard and Murdoch lost his patience again.

"Now, really, Julia, pull yourself together!"

"I'm sorry," she eventually choked out, looking confused, "I don't know what's happening to me."

Murdoch was silent for a moment so as to think. He found the task very difficult but finally came up with a solution. "Hmm, it's possible that the thinner air here is affecting our judgement. And we're most certainly dehydrated, hence...before."

Without further ado he brought forth the remaining water and insisted she drink her fair share. There was only a little left by the time he took a few swigs himself. He prayed to God that they would be able to find a stream once they reached the bottom of the mountain. It appeared he had been wrong in his estimation of three days to get back. It would be at least one more than he had previously thought if they couldn't even _see_ the town yet from way up here!

As they were both becoming increasingly light headed, it was best to carry on. It was the last thing either of them wanted to do but if they didn't, there was no telling what would happen to them up here.

So wearily they trudged down the steep slope, barely keeping their footing on some of the more treacherous parts full of loose rubble. But they held on to one another for support and by the grace of God made it safely to the bottom. Unable to go any further, they crashed mere feet from the pass entrance and not even bothering to put up the tent, became blissfully unaware once more. That is until William felt something tugging near his arm. Bleary eyed, he cocked his head in the direction of the commotion. It took a few seconds for his pupils to adjust to the light but he eventually became aware that he was face to face with a bear!

No, not a bear, he thought lazily, a bear cub!

"Shoo!" he hissed at it while waving his arm in its direction. Louder, "I said shoo!"

The little guy grunted at him but continued to eat the dried beef. Without thinking Murdoch kicked at it and it yelped and ran off. It was then that he realized his mistake. Murdoch hurriedly roused Julia.

"Wha-"

"No time!" he said quickly, adjusting her packs to his back (the cub had ripped open all of Murdoch's own bags). "We have to move, _now_!"

Grabbing her hand, he forced a march from that area, leaving their sleeping bags behind (but at least remembering to grab the compass from his scattered things).

What the devil had he been thinking forgetting to hang their food stuffs in between two trees? That was basic practice while camping, to dissuade creatures from coming too close or eating their food.

Things could have been worse, he thought, at least the cubs-

There was a loud growl from off to the side and Murdoch's blood froze at the terrifying sight. A great big Grizzly was eyeing them angrily. He hastily retrieved the pistol from one of the bags, just in case it decided to come closer as they backed away from it. And then his worst fear came true, it charged!

He let loose a rapid fire of shots but if any of them hit it, there was no effect whatsoever.

"RUN!" screamed Murdoch.


	9. In the End

They tore through the tundra like bats out of hell, so fast were they running. There's nothing like do or die to inspire ones exhausted body to new feats of excellence. And for awhile they managed to keep their distance, Murdoch half dragging Julia behind him. But no matter how strong the incentive was to keep going, eventually they no longer could. The fact was, they had simply burned through all their last reserves of energy, they had nothing left to give. And so it was that Julia faltered, and with her, Murdoch. Tumbling to the ground, they shared one last terrified look and waited for the end to come. They had about three seconds left to live in this world.

His heart beat so loudly in his ears that he could not hear the ferocious growl of the Grizzly as it came ever closer to them. All his remaining faculties were tasked with a single goal; protect Julia at all costs. So he threw himself over top his fiancee in a pathetic effort to spare her life and mouthed the words, 'I love you.' She returned the gesture and they clasped hands. In another second it was all over.

...

* * *

The shot rang out clean and true and though Murdoch could not see it happen, it was quite the sight to behold. The Grizzly shuddered and slid across the ground, mere feet from where the star crossed lovers huddled together. It took them a moment to realize what had happened. They turned to face their ruggedly attired savior but couldn't make out any facial features since he was too far away. Murdoch couldn't believe the man had been able to make such a shot from such a distance. Smoke was oozing out of the barrel of a massive rifle, a rifle still pointed in their direction. Apparently he meant them no harm and was just making sure the Grizzly was dead for he now slung the weapon across his broad shoulders and then rode over to them on a beast of a horse, their own would have palled in comparison.

As he approached, he expertly dismounted his stead which was especially impressive given that he was an older man of about fifty. His face was scraggly and Murdoch thought he looked vaguely familiar but couldn't place him.

"You folks unharmed?" the stranger asked, with an American accent. Neither had caught their breath by this point in time so instead they only nodded. "That Grizzly damn near got you! Never seen the like before!"

Murdoch was thinking the same thing, but about the stranger and his most impressive display. Julia must have had similar thoughts for they both glanced at one another at the exact same moment he said that and then burst out laughing, (more wheezing than anything), prostrate on the ground.

The stranger raised an eyebrow at that but didn't say anything. When they were finished the stranger helped them to their feet. Murdoch's legs felt like jelly and he wobbled around for a moment before stabilizing.

"What were you doing out here anyways?"

"Oh we were just out for a stroll," stated Julia matter of factly.

The man grinned. "I can see that ma'am." More seriously, "I can also see you are in need of further rescuing. I'd be more than happy to take you wherever you wanted to go. Just say the word."

"How incredibly kind of you," said Julia. "And from the bottom of my heart, I thank you for saving our lives. You are a true gentleman."

"Yes, thank you, sir," said Murdoch, vigorously shaking his hand. "I cannot impress upon you my eternal gratitude towards your timely actions."

"My pleasure. But to tell you the truth, it was an accident."

They shared a look at that.

"What do you mean?" asked Julia.

"I was on my way to Whitehorse with some friends of mine when I came across that Grizzly. Decided to make a little extra cash so I told them to go on ahead. It was complete chance I happened across you before _he_ did. I didn't even _notice_ you until after I had lined up my shot, though I had wondered why he was in such a hurry."

"Nevertheless," said Murdoch, "we are indebted to you."

The man shrugged. "Suit yourself. So where were you headed?"

"Whitehorse as well," he said.

"Well, sir, you sure picked a lousy way of getting there. At least, I'm assuming you didn't _want _to add an extra two days to your journey?"

"No," said Murdoch, looking apologetic to Julia, "no we most certainly did not."

"I figured as much. You folks look like you've been through the mill and even by horse, it'll take many hours to get back. Why don't you rest for awhile? I've got food and drink to spare, so help yourselves."

They thanked him profusely again and proceeded to binge on the crystalline water and relatively fresh bread provided to them. Murdoch wondered vaguely if they hadn't died and gone to heaven after all. As they were stuffing their faces, the stranger had removed a gigantic blade from his belt and began cutting into the Grizzly with an expert hand. Within minutes he had removed its pelt and was now working his way through the vast amount of meat. Even this grizzly sight was not enough to thwart their appetites, so strong was their hunger.

Another twenty minutes went by before the stranger had finished his task. In that time the little cub had come over (a safe distance away) to see what had happened, and Murdoch couldn't help but feel bad for him. It seemed that their glorious adventure was racking up quite the body toll. He had never expected this to turn so macabre, so quickly.

No matter what though, he was just thankful to God for still being alive and still breathing and still holding the hand of his soul mate. He stared at Julia then, (she was too distracted by the packaging up of the meat to notice this) and realized what a fool he had been to ever bring her here and for various other things. Though he had proposed to her in the heat of the moment, it was a long time coming. Even so, he had been hesitant to discuss wedding plans. The main reason for this was quite simple. He didn't _want_ to get married, at least, not until _after_ his name had been cleared. Why should he drag her into his mess and have her forever associated with his crime if he didn't have to? But the more he was looking at her now, the more he realized that this didn't matter. All that mattered was that they would be together. The sooner the better. Life was fleeting, there was no telling if they'd have tomorrow. If he learned anything from their misadventures, it was that.

"Julia," he began and she turned to face him, "I thi-"

"Well, folks," said the stranger loudly, as he stood up, "I'm about all done here so I suppose it's about high time we get going. Are you ready?" They both nodded. "Well all right then."

They helped him load the copious amounts of brown paper packaged meat into various bags across the massive horses sides. The horse might have been quite large but Murdoch still didn't get how all three of them were supposed to ride it back to town.

His question was answered promptly. After the stranger had helped them onto his horse, he said, "Take care now."

"You aren't coming with us?" asked Julia confusedly.

"No ma'am, there isn't enough room for the three of us. I can make it back just fine on my own as long as I got Josie here." He patted his rifle.

"But we don't know the way to Whitehorse," said Murdoch.

"That's true," patting the horses head, "but Brutus here does. Just let him lead."

"We can't thank you enough," said Julia. "If you have something to ask of us, please do."

"As a matter of fact, ma'am, there _is_ something you can do for me. When you get into town, take the fur and meat to a man by the name of John Clum or if you can't find him, Jack London. It was him I was helping back home, or at least through the dangerous places up North. I'm afraid the goldfields of Alaska didn't agree with him very well and he's got the beginnings of scurvy."

"I'm sorry to hear that," said Julia. "That's a terrible affliction."

"Thank you for saying that, ma'am. He's a great fellow, destined for great things."

A brief silence.

"We never did get your name," said Murdoch.

"It's Earp, * Wyatt Earp."

Murdoch's eyes widened. "You mean, _the_ Wyatt Earp?"

The man smirked, "One and the same." They gawked at him and then Wyatt struck the hind end of Brutus, who took off like the wind.

* * *

*For those who don't know, Wyatt Earp became a famous gunslinger in 1881 when he took out some 'bad' guys in the O.K. Corral. He went to Nome, Alaska in 1897 to take part in the Klondike gold rush. He went with his long time friend John Clum who had printed Earp's version of the Corral story. According to what I briefly read on wiki, Earp also met Jack London out there who _did_ get scurvy from being out in the goldfields too long. And London_ did_ return home to California in 1898. Oh and Josie or Josephine was the name of his wife who also joined him in Alaska.


	10. The Pedantic Detective Returns

Brutus was so swift footed that they seemed to arrive at Whitehorse in no time at all. Though both of them wanted nothing more than to sleep, they felt obliged to seek out the men Earp had mentioned. The sun was still shining but Murdoch glanced at his resilient pocket watch and saw it was nearly ten o'clock at night. There were only three hotels here, so it wouldn't be very difficult to locate them, and indeed, within a short while they had. Needless to say, Clum and London were rather surprised to find _them_ in the company of Brutus, and not their friend. But it only took them one good look to understand what had happened, making Murdoch's explanation rather moot. However, London seemed quite intrigued by the brief story.

"Say Murdoch, do you think come morning, you'd sit down with me and tell me your whole story?" Murdoch just stared at him wearily. "I'm trying to become a writer and I think my keen sense of human observation could lend quite the flair to your tale." Murdoch raised an eyebrow, thinking how their adventure had plenty of flair to it on its own. "I mean, if you should consent to letting me write it, that is. So will you?"

"We shall see. Right now we are off to bed."

"Of course, sir, sleep as long as you like, but after that-"

"_Jack_," said Clum, shutting up the eager beaver once and for all.

Then Murdoch turned on his heel and arm in arm with Julia headed back to their hotel.

* * *

Fresh clothing, fresh bandages, and fresh food made the next morning seem like a dream come true. Such simple pleasures brought smiles to both their faces and he felt like nothing could go wrong. Their bliss was quickly shattered by the intrepid young man and because of this, Murdoch was quite peeved.

"Well, Murdoch, what do you say today?"

"The answer is no, sir."

London appeared quite taken aback, as much from his words as his coldness. "Are you quite sure? It could be helpful to talk about such traumatic events. Clear the air, so to speak."

"Please, sir, just leave us be. I will not have our misfortune be canon fodder for the public's amusement."

"But-"

"You heard him," said Julia, forcefully but not unkindly. "We've made our decision. I'm afraid you'll just have to use your imagination for your novel. Surely you must have some ideas of your own?"

"Of course I do," he grumbled, glowering at Murdoch, "but it is always helpful to have additional inspiration."

Slight awkward pause.

"Do thank your friend for us again when he returns," she said. "Without him, we would surely have been lost."

Finding his gracious side again,"I'd be more than happy to. But does this mean you two are leaving already?"

"Yes," said Julia, sharing a look with Murdoch, "we are quite decided on the matter."

"Well, in that case," he said holding out his hand, "I wish you both safe travels and the best of luck in your future endeavours."

"You as well," she said, shaking his hand and simultaneously nudging Murdoch to do the same.

"Yes," he said, "I hope your novel turns out nicely. What will you call it?"

"I don't know yet," London said thoughtfully. "Likely it will have the word wild in it though, for there is no better description of this untamed land."

"Indeed, sir." He thought about his urges to go explore and said, "Might I suggest call of the wild?"

"Say, Murdoch," London said smiling, "that's not half bad. I'll be sure to remember it."

* * *

The train's first stop was in Prince George and unlike the last time, they decided to go out and stretch their legs a bit. The city was a far cry from the bustling landscape of Toronto, but there was still a lot to see nonetheless. As Murdoch scanned the distance, he saw a familiar, welcome sight.

He pointed this out to Julia, and she said surprised, "Are you quite sure?"

"Completely."

They smiled at one another and quickly made their way over.

* * *

A week later and they were finally back home. Previously Murdoch would have expected to be full of a terrible trepidation but now...now that things were different, he felt like he was bullet proof and no matter what Stockton threw at him, he'd come out on top.

They entered the station house arm in arm and found many odd stares from the lads, as if they were unsure of how to react.

But then George spotted them and yelped, "You're back, sir! And doctor!" He hurried over to greet them properly and by his actions, everyone else followed suit.

After they had dispersed, George said quietly, awkwardly, "I must say, things have been rather off here since the day of the...wedding. People have been saying all sorts of things about you, sir. Not that I'd ever believe a word of it but it is curious what happened..." He glanced down and then catching their gleeful eyes, exclaimed, "You're _married_!?"

Julia laughed at his expression so it was up to Murdoch to respond.

"Yes, George," said Murdoch, smiling widely, putting an arm around Julia's waist, "that we are."

"Holy crackers!" he burst out, hugging them both affectionately. "I'm so very happy for the both of you!"

They were about to respond when there was an interruption.

"What's all this bloody racket about then, Crabtree?" barked Brackenreid, cane in hand, from the front entrance. "Who are-" They turned around to face him and his face fell, making Murdoch feel a slight twinge of guilt and sadness. "Murdoch," he nodded. "Doctor. It's been awhile."

"Sir," shouted George, "they're married!"

Brackenreid raised an eyebrow at that and glanced at their hands. "Yes, I can see that, Crabtree." Forcing a smile, "Well, congratulations," he said, shaking both their hands." The inspector whispered in his ear, "Murdoch, a word."

He shared a grim look with Julia and then released his hold on her.

Once within his office, Brackenreid said, "Close the door."

"So," said Brackenreid tensely, fixing himself a drink, "before I get carried away, I'd like to know your version of events for what happened that day, the day of the doctor's wedding."

"Why, sir?" he asked, feigning confusion, "Why do you want to know?"

The inspector took a sip, sizing him up. "Don't you know?"

"Know what?"

Without skipping a beat, "Ava Moon escaped police custody that day."

"What?" said Murdoch sharply. "How did this occur?"

Brackenreid smiled without humour, "That's what I'm _still_ trying to figure out, Murdoch. But you see, she just vanished without a trace, almost as if she knew how to avoid us and then, oddly, you went and disappeared too."

"I didn't disappear, sir, I went off with Julia. We thought it better that way."

"Better for who?"

"Sir?"

"If you had nothing to hide, then why didn't you let anyone know where you were going before you up and left?"

"An oversight," Murdoch responded. "I'm afraid we were caught up in the moment and weren't thinking clearly."

"I'd believe that for the _moment_, Murdoch, but what about the past month and a half? There's been no word from either of you in all that time. For all we knew, you were dead."

_Was the inspector simply mad at him? Is this what he was truly being questioned about and not the escape? Had he hurt his feelings?_

"I'm sorry, sir, I don't know what to tell you. We simply forgot to write."

"Oh I get it," Brackenreid said, winking at him. "Busy as the birds and the bees were you?"

_When did the inspector think they had gotten married?_

Murdoch didn't respond and simply looked embarrassed. Brackenreid slapped him on the back. "Good on you, me old mucker. It's about damn time!"

"Sir, _please_, this is hardly appropriate conversation for the work place..or anywhere for that matter."

Brackenreid laughed. "Guess married life hasn't loosened you up at all. Too bad." He drained his glass and then abruptly his mood changed. "But enough about all that nonsense. I still want to hear from your mouth exactly what happened that day. Just the straight facts, Murdoch. That should be very easy for a man like you."

"Well, sir, not long before Julia's wedding was to take place, George gave me a letter she had written me while I was imprisoned."

Brackenreid went over to his desk and pulled out a piece of paper, "Ah yes, the lovely letter you conveniently left behind. Quite the revealing little thing."

"Yes, sir, well, as you can imagine, I decided to act on this letter, and-"

"Funny that," said Brackenreid, pouring himself another drink.

"Sir?"

"Remember the Kissing Bandit case, Murdoch?"

"Of course, sir, it hasn't been _that_ long."

"Well, then, you should have no difficulty remembering our little discussion that evening in your office. You know, the one were I _tried_ to make you see reason and go after the doctor. You flat out refused to lift a bloody finger! So," he said taking another sip, "I find it funny that you changed your mind, and acted so...rashly all of a sudden, so unlike, well," - he gestured vaguely towards him- "you."

"You say you've read the letter, sir, surely you can see how it would cause me to react. Once I knew how Julia truly felt, I couldn't just ignore this, especially since I felt the same way. What kind of man does that? What kind of man condemns themselves and someone they love to a life of misery?"

"Yes," said Brackenreid eyeing him suspiciously, "what kind of man indeed."

Murdoch was finally feeling the pressure of the situation but held fast under his gaze.

"Keep going then. You read the letter and then what happened?"

Murdoch feigned confusion. "Why I hurried to the church of course."

"And that's it? Nothing else happened in between these two events?"

"I did withdraw some money from my bank since I wouldn't have the chance to later and wasn't sure if I'd be needing it. But other than that, nothing else happened." The necessary lie made him hate himself a bit. "Why do you ask? Why are you questioning me so intensely about this?" Wide-eyed, "Sir, surely you don't think _I _had something to do with Ava Moon's escape?"

Sighing, "I don't know what to think, Murdoch. You have to admit, the situation is curious. You were the only one here and by the time we came back, she was gone, as were you."

"Perhaps she picked the lock after I had left? I didn't have much trouble myself."

"Perhaps," he said quietly. "There's just one problem with that theory."

"Oh?"

"You were pretty upset about your role in her being brutalized. I could see it in your eyes when you told me." Staring directly into his soul, "You can tell me the truth, me old mucker. What _really_ happened that day? I promise, no one else need ever know. But I _have_ to. It's been nagging at me all this time."

_Now what? If I tell him the truth, he will be forced to carry this burden around with him the rest of his days. But if I don't, or even if I do...he might never fully trust me again. But don't I owe him more than that after everything we've been through?_

Murdoch sighed. "Are you quite sure you want to hear this, sir?" The inspector steeled himself and nodded. "You're right, sir, I let her go."

Silence.

"Bloody hell! You mean you actually did it? I didn't actually think- What in the name of God were you _thinking_? How could you- how could _you _of all people commit such a crime?"

"It's like you said, sir, I couldn't live with myself knowing that I had condemned her to the gallows. Surely you've done questionable things to ease your conscience?"

"Oh bollocks!" he said, draining his glass again and calming down. "I've got to admit, Murdoch, you've got some moxie coming clean like that! Guess I was wrong, guess married life _has_ made you a new man!"

"Now what, sir?"

"Now nothing, Murdoch. You go back to doing your job and we never speak of this again."

Raising an eyebrow, he said, "Just like that, sir?"

"Do you have a problem with that?"

"No, sir, it's just...what about Stockton?"

Brackenreid made a face. "Oh, right, you don't know. Giles is the new big cheese."

"Oh, really?" Murdoch said surprised, thinking this was the worst possible news imaginable. "When did this happen?"

"Just last week."

"Well, sir, what about Giles then? What shall we say when he comes around?"

Brackenreid smirked, "What I said the last time. Faulty locks."

"Do you really think he'll believe that _again_, sir?"

"Of course not, Murdoch! This is bloody Giles we're talking about! The man can sniff out a lie a block away! But if I couldn't find any real proof against you, neither will he. And believe me, Murdoch, he's already tried...many times. That said, I'd watch myself around him if I were you. He's got it in for you. That seems to be a habit of yours when it comes to your superiors. Though this time you actually earned it."

Another pause.

"I don't know how to thank you, sir, you have my eternal gratitude. And if there's-"

"Oh, off with you now!" he interjected, like he always did when a man got overly sensitive. "Go do something useful! Go tend to your wife, Murdoch!"

So that's exactly what he did.

Afterwards, while they were still basking in the glow of their latest erotic excursion, she said, "Will this matter never be put to bed?"

"Possibly not, Julia," he said, smiling, "but I know of something else that _can _be."

"Really, William?" she said laughing as he started kissing her neck. "Already?"

"Always and forever," he murmured.


End file.
